American Railcar Industries, Inc. says its Bude, Miss., repair facility has reached a significant safety milestone: 2 million consecutive man-hours worked without a lost time injury. This surpasses the previous record of 1,984,746 man-hours established in December 1999.
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Economic Planning Associates has upped its freight car production estimate for 2011 from 19,800 units to 22,500 units, with more-substantial growth beginning in 2012, according to its just-released analysis. “After three dismal years, we look for railcar deliveries to advance moderately to 32, ...

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority board Thursday approved plans to place the proposed Regional Connector in downtown Los Angeles fully underground. The vote authorizes a final phase of study before engineering and construction can begin. ...

Amtrak has awarded a six-year, $466 million contract to Siemens Mobility (a division of Siemens Industry, Inc.) for 70 “Cities Sprinter” ACS-64 electric locomotives for Northeast Corridor service. Designed to operate at speeds up to 125 mph between Boston and Washington D.C. and 110 mph ...

Amtrak Sept. 28 unveiled an ambitious vision for “Next-Generation High-Speed Rail service” in the Northeast, superseding and complementing its existing Northeast Corridor, and designed to dramatically reduce travel times between Boston and Washington, D.C. upon full buildout in 2040.

U.S. carload freight traffic rose 9.6% during the week ending October 23 over the comparable week in 2009, the Association of American Railroads reported Thursday. Intermodal traffic also rose for the week, up 13.6% compared with the same week a year ago. Container volume grew 14.6%; trailer volume ...

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced Thursday that DOT is sending grants totaling $2.4 billion to 54 rail projects in 23 states qualifying for aid under the Obama Administration’s high speed rail initiative.

“States understand that high speed rail represents a unique opportunity to create jobs, revitalize our manufacturing base, and spur economic development and provide people with jobs,” said LaHood (pictured at left).

DOT says30 passenger railcar builders and component suppliers have agreed to establish or expand operations in the U.S. to meetthe anticipated demand.

The largest grants are going to California, $901.574 million, and Florida, $808 million.Both of these states have plans for high speed lines that meet international standards.The remainder are for higher-speed (HrSR) lines.